Orders, Decorations, Medals and Militaria

An unusual and rare M.B.E. group of six awarded to Lieutenant-Commander A. B. Collins, Royal Navy

The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, M.B.E. (Military) 1st type breast badge, the reverse hallmarked London 1919; Ashantee 1873-74, 1 clasp, Coomassie (A.B. H.M.S. Active. 73-74); South Africa 1877-79, no clasp (P.O. 1 Cl. H.M.S. “Orontes”); Egypt & Sudan 1882-89, 1 clasp, Alexandria 11th July (Bo’sn. R.N. H.M.S. ‘Inflexible’); British War Medal (Lt. Commr. R.N.); Khedive’s Star 1882, minor nicks, otherwise nearly extremely fine (6) £1000-1200

Abraham Bennett Collins was born at Liverpool on 1 December 1851, and joined the Royal Navy on 1 December 1869. He joined Active in January 1873 and took part in the Ashantee campaign of 1873-74, including the capture of Boubarasu, the battle of Amoaful, action at Ordahsu and capture of Coomassie. In the same ship he served in an expedition against the pirates of the river Congo in 1875, and whilst at sea off the island of St Helena, in January 1876, he shared in the rescue of a seaman who had fallen overboard, for which he was awarded a Testimonial on Vellum by the Royal Humane Society

He served as Petty Officer (Captain of the Main Top) aboard the troopship Orontes during the South African campaign in 1879, and when he re-engaged for Continuous Service at the end of that year, is noted as having a ‘wound on thigh’, about which nothing more is known. Promoted to Boatswain in January 1881, he served aboard Inflexible at the bombardment of Alexandria in July 1882. He was subsequently promoted to Chief Boatswain in March 1903, to Lieutenant in April 1905, and to Lieutenant-Commander (Retired) on 3 April 1913. He served during the Great War at Rosyth Naval Base from May 1916 to July 1919, and was awarded the M.B.E. for his services during the war. He retired to St Helier, Jersey, where he died on 3 November 1926.